Bill to Bar Illegal Immigrants From Schools Is Defeated : Legislature: After a bitter debate, panel votes 10 to 4 to reject a plan to limit access to public education.

A bill to deny public education to undocumented immigrants was killed amid bitter debate Wednesday, while the Legislature’s Latino Caucus denounced a series of 20 other bills that they say target new immigrants as scapegoats for California’s economic troubles.

The measures seek to deny undocumented immigrants emergency medical care, education in public schools and state colleges, driver’s licenses, government housing, welfare and workers’ compensation benefits. All but two measures are being pushed by Republican legislators, and nearly all the lawmakers carrying the bills are from Southern California.

“They stifle the ability of hard-working people looking to better their lives and they trample on the ambition of young adults who are simply trying to achieve the American dream,” said Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles), chairman of the Latino caucus.

Polanco was joined at a news conference by several Democratic legislators and lobbyists who denounced the measures. Later in the day, dozens of activists, recent immigrants and lobbyists packed a hearing to oppose the bill to deny state funds for education of undocumented immigrants.

The bill failed on a 10-4 party-line vote to clear the Assembly Education Committee.

Assemblyman Richard L. Mountjoy (R-Arcadia), who is pushing the bill and four others on the list, said it is aimed at holding back a “tidal wave” of “illegal invaders” and is designed to “protect our precious tax dollars.”

The debate turned vicious among legislators on the Education Committee. More than one speaker opposing the bill called Mountjoy a racist.

Mountjoy declared that illegal immigration “is an issue that needs to be addressed,” and said there are 300,000 undocumented immigrants attending public schools in California at a cost of $2 billion a year.

“Our tax dollars,” Mountjoy said, “should be used to give the best education possible to those that have obeyed our laws, that immigrated to this country through . . . our generous immigration policies.”

Polanco and other opponents of the bill pointed out that immigrants--both legal and illegal--pay taxes.

Democratic legislators raised the possibility that children, denied access to schools, would end up on the streets and would never become literate. The legislative analyst’s office said the bill was most likely unconstitutional.

As he defended the proposal, Mountjoy cited polls that he said showed 80% of the population supports the concept behind the bill. Delaine Eastin (D-Fremont), chairwoman of the Education Committee, acknowledged that Mountjoy had “identified a hot button issue” but called it “real divisive.”

“I believe the Bible: Blessed are the children,” said Eastin, a likely candidate for state schools superintendent in 1994. “I don’t believe grown-ups should be picking on kids.”